SmartCar, Toyota, even Chevrolet are all getting into the electric car game. In response, hundreds of “Quick Charge” stations have been contracted or constructed across the United States & Canada – but there’s hardly any cars with all EV drives to use them.

AeroVironment is the company which introduces three levels of recharger stations for North America: Level I, II and of course III. The “level” of quick chargers depends on how many volts they produce.

While Level I “chargers” consist of a cord and a 120-volt household outlet and Level II chargers offer a little more juice from a 240-volt appliance outlet, the Department of Energy defines Level III chargers as permanently wired units rated at greater than 14.4 kilowatts… as it is explained by Wired.

AeroVironment’s Quick Charge stations were originally developed for the Nissan Leaf EV and Mitsubishi’s i-MiEV cars. But now with the Chevy Volt, SmartEV and Toyota Prius Plug-in finally ready to hit the production line, it seems Quick Charge will be a successful business. Now all they have to do is wait for all these (mostly) import EV’s to come over to the United States & Canada. Oh boy…

Penske Automotive has hired Jill to lead the team; she brings over 30 years experience including, but not limited to, the auto maker which brought back suicide doors on their S-Series Coupe, and we will always thanks her for it. According the Penske – “Ms. Lajdziak has a reputation for building brand awareness and customer loyalty through a focus on the customer experience and cultivating a strong dealer network. In this role, Ms. Lajdziak will lead the smart field sales organization, including directing all aspects of advertising, marketing and sales promotion for the smart brand, and will work directly with the smart dealer body to develop business opportunities.”

Penske Automotive is the exclusive distributor of the smart fortwo and related parts in the U.S. – supporting 79 smart retail centers throughout the country.

via The Oakland Press

Smart’s construction, both size and in the bio-degradable/recyclable materials both interior and exterior are constructed from are so overly-”green” that the Environmental Protection Agency has classified it as a SmartWay vehicle, for low air pollution and greenhouse gas scores. As the car is so small, you won’t need to circle city blocks endlessly in search of a spot – as it is pretty much a perfect urban ride. This cuts own on emissions as well, – Smart’s fuel efficiency ratings range from 33 miles per gallon city to 41 highway.

Ok, so that’s kinda green – but what’s it cost? Cheaper then a Toyota Prius or even Honda’s Insight – your average Smart starting costs hover around $12,000 USD (less then some pre-owned Cadillacs!) – With a low-insurance rate and a future electric-hybrid version of fortwo to come, Smart will most likely stay near the top of most “Green” car enthusiasts list for years.

1st Annual SMART Car Nationals-The Place to Be is in KC
Kansas City, June 11th, 12th, and 13th of 2010

+ Come get a taste of KC with your fellow smart car owners,
+ Local tours and events
+ Local BBQ
+ SMART car product sales, service, and installs will be available

The brand is launching a new cupcake and, much to our clogged arteries content, a 125,000 carton cupcake giveaway, a mobile tour, a Twitter feed, a YouTube channel, a Flickr photostream, event marketing, TV spots and blog posts (ahem, want to send me some cupcakes Little Debbie??) and the giving away of two Smartcars. From October 11 through December 12, a truck filled with branded Smart cars will stop in Washington, DC, Philadelphia, New York City, Boston, Manchester, NH, Hartford, CT, Scranton, PA, Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, Detroit, Chicago, St. Louis, Atlanta, Miami, Tampa, Orlando, Houston, Dallas, San Antonio, Phoenix and Los Angeles.

“Our goal was to create a bigger-than-life campaign that could be leveraged across every medium imaginable,” says Luckie & Co. Executive Vice President/Creative Director Brad White. “Who could resist a Smart Car wrapped like a Little Debbie Cupcake? Come to think of it, who could resist a Little Debbie Cupcake?”

Smart BRABUS tailor made

smart BRABUS tailor made sets new standards for stylish car customization in this class of vehicles.

Just Google “Smartcar Fans” and you’ll find pages upon pages of Smart fans from across the globe. One of our favorite sites is 451s.com, which takes its name for the model number Smart vehicles made post-2008 have. This site alone consists of fortwo drivers in Europe, Canada & the United States.

According to a recent BusinessWeek article: “German carmakers Daimler, BMW and Audi said Tuesday their August sales declined from year-ago levels, though all offered more upbeat assessments, indicating the sales trends of the economic downturn are abating.” At first, the steadying fuel prices were blamed for the slowing of Smart sales – but to be honest, until Cash for Clunkers came about, no brand witnessed a major incline of closed deals. “Mercedes, Smart and Maybachs said it saw strong contributions from several regions and expected more positive results from the release of new models…” As of this month Mercedes has only sold 78,600 Smart Units YTD. Guess we will have to wait and see what fortwo Cabrio CDi does for Smart’s pocketbook in ‘10.

The current Smart fortwo takes over 20 seconds to reach it’s 0 – 60 time. The cdi variant can cover this ground in under 17 seconds. Makes speeding away from those midtown traffic jams a bit easier. CO2 emissions are kept low at 88 grams per kilometer, and fortwo cdi ranges about 69 miles per – making it a more eco-friendly Smart. 2010’s cdi model will be available later this year, at a price of €11,790. Check out full details in the press release below.

For model year 2010 the smart fortwo cdi has been given a clear power boost, yet it remains just as economical and environmentally friendly as before. In future the state-of-the-art three-cylinder diesel engine will produce 21 percent more power and deliver approximately 18 percent more maximum torque. Although this extra power makes the popular two-seater car noticeably livelier, it does not affect its exemplary fuel consumption. As before, it consumes just 3.4 litres of diesel per 100 kilometres (NEDC). Furthermore, with CO2 emissions of 88 g/km it continues to assert its leading position as the CO2 champion. In addition, from model year 2010 all versions of the smart fortwo including the BRABUS variants will comply with the strict emission limits of the EU5 standard.

The smart fortwo enjoys the worldwide reputation of a car that is perfect for the times we live in. Thanks to its unique concept it takes up minimum road and parking space, boasts low fuel consumption and carbon dioxide emissions and combines mobility, ecology and joie de vivre in a unique way. For the new model year smart is uncompromisingly continuing its philosophy and making the smart fortwo even more environmentally friendly and attractive.

The most important change: the smart fortwo cdi with a length of 2.69 metres is redefining economy and driving fun. Its reengineered diesel engine now has an output of 40 kW/54 hp – seven kW or 21 percent more than its predecessor. Moreover, the new three-cylinder engine delivers maximum torque of 130 Newton metres (an increase of 18 percent). This makes the car that is brimming with lifestyle appeal even more agile and fun to drive. Thanks to the power boost it now sprints from 0 – 100 km/h in just 16.8 seconds. However, the increased liveliness does not affect the outstanding fuel consumption and emission figures of the trendy two-seater car. The combined fuel consumption still stands at 3.4 litres per 100 kilometres and the extremely low CO2 emissions of just 88 g/km mean that the smart fortwo cdi is still the CO2 world champion among all production cars with combustion engines.

The 21 percent power increase is primarily realised through modified pistons in conjunction with adjusted injection and charge pressure parameters. Furthermore, thanks to the increased torque it was also possible to lengthen the gear ratios of the third and fourth gears by ten and eleven percent respectively, and to lower the shifting points in the automatic programme. This reduces the rpm level in speed ranges used particularly frequently – with benefits in terms of fuel consumption and noise level. The smart fortwo cdi is equipped with a closed diesel particulate filter and emissions are below the limit values laid down in the EU5 standard.

Thanks to optimised engine and transmission management the petrol models of the popular two-seater car also comply with the demanding EU5 exhaust gas standard. Not only does this help the environment – in many countries it entails clear tax advantages.

New contrast components in shiny pearl black, which further upgrade the interior of the smart fortwo, and a new folding armrest available as an option, provide for increased comfort.

Further optional equipment includes the smart hands-free system with a colour display and extensive multimedia functions. It features the sassy design typical of the brand, a Bluetooth® interface, voice control and optional iPod® connection and is perfectly integrated in the vehicle electronics and the audio system. It is simple and safe to operate via a wireless controller on the centre console.

All updated smart fortwo variants can be ordered now. The prices for the petrol models are unchanged. In future the 40 kW/54 hp smart fortwo cdi will cost €11 790 as a coupé in the pure equipment line (German price incl. VAT).